The London Files
by Yungicurus
Summary: What had to turn out into a quiet, cosy night for Hermione and Ginny becomes a major problem for Aurors Harry and Ron. Meanwhile, they must not lose touch with reality and, ultimately, themselves. Canon compliant, regular updates.
1. San Paolo's

Life had an effect on Hermione Granger. Day after day working at the office, attending meetings and writing memos; convincing that werewolves were not subhuman and wary simplifying befuddled rules were just a small bit of her daily activities. She worked until late, stood up early the next day and simultaneously was able to fit a social life (and a lover) in the spare time in between. But in the last few months her social life had considerably toned down to levels even she found utterly unsatisfying. Where in her younger years her social life had been a vast, wild and often dangerous tidal wave, nowadays it resembled more of a creek, flowing beside piles of paperwork and empty quills.

Therefore she was happy, sincerely happy, that she was finally meeting up with Ginny again. Ginny Weasley, the red-haired superstar, chaser at the Holyhead Harpies and countless' teenage boys' and girls' dream. Her poster had sold particularly well just before the start of the new Quidditch season, Ron told her, and he constantly beamed when he saw Ginny's poster hanging around wherever they went. They had hung up a poster in their apartment as well, and although Hermione wasn't particularly interested in Quidditch – she rarely found time to attend Ginny's matches – her support for Ginny was staunch.

Life with Ron wasn't exceptionally interesting as well, but Hermione was more than happy that it was this way; her past adventures had led her to believe that she wanted a quiet life, a happy life, although her fame had stretched out so far that the former would be difficult to achieve. While traveling for work to Madagascar – of all places – she found herself signing autographs to bypassing witches, wizards, and even house elves. Clearly, her fame had stretched beyond borders, but so did her dignity; everywhere she came she was treated with an unusual amount of respect. Although she wasn't fond of (over)attention (unlike Ron), she had used her position for the good and passed several important international treaties for house elves and previously "subhuman creatures", such as werewolves and vampires, with remarkable ease.

Naturally, Hermione had acclimatized to her celebrity status, and so had Ginny. If they were to enter any wizarding restaurant or pub in Great Britain, they could be sure they were noted in the Daily Prophet next morning. More, if one of them left earlier, they could discover themselves in articles by Rita Skeeter. The Leaky Cauldron, which Ginny suggested, was thus an absolute no-go. Ginny had then proposed that Hermione chose a place for their catch-up session and she accepted her request. A quick search on her Muggle phone and contacting her childhood friend Samantha had led her to use TripAdvisor to find the best place. Samantha obviously had done this many times before (a habit instilled by her various meet and break-up dinners) and suggested many places herself.

'Boa Comida in Camden's a really good place, Hermy,' she had said. 'If you're more into Asian food I can recommend the Ugly Duck on Portobello Road; the place's mostly packed, though.'

Hermione had nodded over the phone, unable for Samantha to see. She wondered whether Ginny had tasted something else than English food – apart from the usual European food such as pizza and kebab. While the thought ran through her head, Samantha appeared to have a realization.

'Oh! Hermy, I know one! Muy Caro in Kingston Upon Thames is definitely the place to be for Venezuelan food! You know how good that is? It's-'

'Eh, Sam, my friend and I are more looking for a traditional European restaurant,' Hermione interrupted.

'Oh,' it sounded from the other side of the phone. She sounded slightly offended, but coughed and said with a normal voice, 'I think you should go to Trattoria San Paolo then, it's in Knightsbridge. My parents think the food is almost saint-like..'

Hermione smiled. 'Thanks, Sam,' she said as the closed the call with the usual formalities.

She had found her place to eat and meet-up and Ginny and she was tremendously looking forward to it. It was in a few days already, but for the reservation, it wouldn't really matter. Hermione was curious how Ginny would take it; a Muggle restaurant. Her lips curled in her smile when Harry told her how Ginny was on the brink of Confunding muggle officials when they were forced to take a Muggle flight a few months back.

The last few days for the meet-up went by like a Muggle metro. Ginny had agreed to eat at San Paolo after Hermione had assured her that she could take her wand with her. Hermione arranged it through TripAdvisor. She herself would see to it that Ginny didn't do anything bold – after all, Ginny's trademark hex had become known to the general public. Hermione guaranteed herself, then, that it wasn't necessarily at all to keep an eye on Ginny. They were bosom friends and part of a family – although not yet official.

Hermione took the Tube to the Italian trattoria; living in the wizarding world, she found it easing to hear monotone 'Mind the gap' voice audio after entering the Tube. The commute didn't last too long, and it was beneficial that the restaurant was near Sloane Square station as Ginny had lots of opportunities to safely Apparate into one of the many alleys in the surrounding streets. Hermione was early; they had agreed to be there at half past eight, but Hermione was in the Tube at seven o'clock. She went straight from the Ministry to the Tube. Secretary Brookes was a bit startled when Hermione announced to leave around a quarter to seven. It was true, it was early for her, but the time gap between her arriving at Sloane Square and the agreed time at San Paolo gave her an opportunity to stroll around in Knightsbridge, one of her favourite parts of London, and clear up her mind.

Just before half past eight she entered San Paolo. The restaurant was cosily located at an intersection near Sloane Square. Inside the restaurant the tables were neatly arranged and big, old pictures decorated the walls, which Hermione recognised as saints from the Catholic Church. Their table was near the window, with a table in front of them and a table behind them; if they looked left they could watch people passing by at Sloane Square and to the right were several other tables, out of earshot to them.

She had chosen their table with care. The Muffliato charm was easy to cast in two directions; it was difficult to do that in a 360-degree fashion in a packed restaurant, let alone that it was too suspicious if you would be waving around a wand in front of a dozen muggles. Hermione smiled at the thought of her waving around. While her level of bravery was above average, her level foolishness had luckily not yet matched that level.

A few minutes went by until Ginny Weasley arrived at the restaurant. She was fancily dressed. Her entrance attracted several glances from the visitors in the restaurant; after Hermione's entrance, a vast number of people had entered San Paolo. It made the place quite packed. Ginny's entrance had given Hermione the opportunity to cast the necessary charms to not let them be overheard. Although, it wasn't that necessary; it was just more convenient and ensured that their conversation wasn't confined to general things, but they could go more in-depth – gossip, among other things.

'Ginny,' said Hermione as she stood up. She smiled and they gave each other the proper greetings.

'Fancy neighbourhood, this is.'

'I know, right?' Hermione replied. 'Not my own idea, though.'

'Aah, good enough.' Ginny leaned over the table, having not even taken off her coat. 'You cast the enchantments?' she whispered.

Hermione nodded. 'Taken care of Gin, don't worry.'

A young, blonde waitress approached their table, carrying to menus in her right hand. She stopped and looked at both women. 'Something to drink?' she said, her words drenched in a thick London accent.

Ginny glanced at Hermione. She understood that she had to order first.

'Prosecco, please.'

'Same for me,' Ginny added.

The waitress nodded, gave them their menus and left. Ginny laughed. 'I've no idea what prosecco is.' Hermione joined in.

'You usually eat it with fish or salad.'

'Right,' said Ginny. 'Did you know..' she continued, and they began a lengthy discussion of the latest news of their families and friends, followed by some rumours and humorous occasions Ginny had with her fans. Her database of stories knew no end; their starters were delivered as four young men joined a table behind Ginny. Hermione gave them a glance but brought her attention back to Ginny, who was telling how Oliver Wood had been outstanding this season - except when he faced the Holyhead Harpies.

As they began to eat their starters – Hermione had chosen carpaccio, Ginny a variant of Italian salad – she informed Ginny about the four young guys behind her.

'They're not that old,' said Ginny, giving them a quick glance over her shoulder. She put some lettuce in her mouth. 'What's the matter with them, anyway?'

'They just seem.. odd... As if they want to discuss something very urgent.'

'Well, we'll see,' shrugged Ginny.

'.. Hear,' she corrected herself.

They finished eating their starters. Hermione was happily chatting about a case at work when Ginny gestured to talk a little bit softer.

'.. and then she showed me this paper with like, moving pictures, lads.'

'Seriously, Dan, lad, you go' to stop inventing this bullshit,' said another voice.

Ginny stared at Hermione. 'You hear that?'

Hermione nodded. 'Can't be much.'

The conversation of the group of guys behind Ginny continued.

'No, but Frankie, I swear on me mum's grave, it's true. After that – this is gonna sound really weird – but then she took a long wooden stick and pointed it at me, after that I was sick and in bed for a couple of days n' stuff-' The table roared with laughter. Frankie took the word.

'Sure Dan, sure.. so wha' was she after, then? Long time since you've been able to have physical contact with a bird.' The rest laughed again. Dan was quiet.

'Dunno. I bought a ball of fur the other day for me little sis', I can vaguely remember her saying that she wanted that back. Can't be much, can it?'

Frankie chuckled. 'No, Dan, I think it's al'ight. Now, lads, let's get us some pints,' he said while a waiter approached.

Ginny and Hermione stared at each other. Hermione looked into her eyes and saw a look that she knew; Ginny had solved this case on her own, in a matter of seconds.

'I'm telling you, Hermione, someone's tried to get a pygmy puff from him! Which he purchased. How's that possible in the first place?'

'I don't know, really,' replied Hermione. She was still a bit too awestruck at the oddity of the situation. Hadn't she implicitly chosen a Muggle restaurant to be away from the power that witches and wizards called magic? She sighed.

'I'm not sure whether anyone would threaten a Muggle with a wand for a pygmy puff,' Hermione said. She put her fork and knife on her plate as a sign that she had finished her starters. Ginny followed her example.

'Well, if Harry would do harm to my Arnold, back in the day, you know, I'd hex him.'

Hermione smiled gleefully at her friend. 'You know Harry would never do that.'

'But still!' insisted Ginny. 'I just meant to say that a pygmy puff is definitely more than a ball of fur.'

'Of course, of course, Ginny – but let's focus on this situation. The guy has been threatened with a wand, saw moving pictures on a page, most likely the Daily Prophet, and got a pygmy puff out of nowhere.' Hermione shuffled in her chair.

'The pygmy puff's gotta go back, though,' she continued. 'I'll write a memo to the Obliviator Office and they'll get that sorted right away. But, most importantly, he seems to have doubts about this all himself.'

'So?' said Ginny. 'Didn't you hear what he said? "Sick in bed for a few days?" after he had been threatened with a wand. The poor lad's been hexed.'

'Has he..?' Hermione hesitated. The case was more serious than she expected. She was silently weighing her options. The Ministry was closed now, after eight, except for unusual cases – there were always some Aurors on duty, but they had more pressing cases at their hands. For two weeks in a row, random Muggles found themselves a hundred miles from where they went to bed. The Auror Office was stunned and the Auror's night shifts were mostly initiated to immediately respond to that sort of call. She cursed at herself. They were bound to solve this situation on their own.

Ginny recognised her looks. 'Don't worry too much. Unless he suddenly grabs the pygmy puff out of his jacket, we'll just Obliviate him while he's going to the toilet.'

Hermione looked grim. 'And how do we get him there?'

'Using a Suggestion Spell, of course.'

Ginny happily ordered her main dish when the waitress came stopping by at her table a few moments after this. Hermione ordered something as well, but her mind wasn't fully focusing on the food as she was trying to figure out how to handle this situation. She was inclined to accept Ginny's proposal, but too much could go wrong in a crowded restaurant like San Paolo. If there was a thing Hermione wasn't very much fond of in present day, it was taking risks.

Hermione shot Ginny a look, who was still gleefully drinking her prosecco.

'Or,' began Ginny. It was obvious that she found the matter entertaining. 'I could persuade that Dan boy to give some more details,' she winked.

'Stop it, Gin,' smiled Hermione.

'I could crawl up to him, seduce him with my wit and charm before I've even finished my spaghetti ... whatever' Ginny's eyes were wide. Hermione was laughing.

While cracking jokes about pygmy puffs and the gentlemen behind Ginny, Hermione thought she caught something fluffy in her eyesight. Directly on the table behind Ginny, keys were spread out, as if its owner made itself ready to leave.

'Lads, I got to get something out of the car,' a familiar voice spoke.

'Dan,' mumbled Hermione.

She was obsessively looking towards the keys. Something attached to the cord seemed fluffy and Hermione was convinced that it was indeed – or, no … it couldn't be true. She tried to catch Ginny's attention, who was happily chatting about how good the food was at San Paolo's compared to her strict Quidditch diet, while at the same time trying to see if the ball of fluff moved. Ginny noticed, but as a consequence of the former, she raised her eyebrows as a reply to Hermione's quick glances.

'What are you doing, H'mione?'

Ginny's mouth was full of spaghetti. If it wasn't for this moment Hermione would've laughed, either at the fact that the self-proclaimed "connoisseur of good food" was eating plain spaghetti-something or the fact that she reminded her of Ron Weasley in his less than flattering consumption of anything edible. Family traits show.

Hermione was also eating her plate of Italian-style mussels and used one to gesture at the key cord behind Ginny, who in reaction quickly glanced behind her back.

'There's nothing there?'

Hermione immediately glanced too but, indeed, the ball of fluff wasn't there.

'You got to learn to relax,' Ginny gestured with her fork. 'Try yoga or something similar, it's really mesmerizing.'

'No, none of that all,' dismissed Hermione. 'I thought I just saw a pygmy puff.'

'What did you see?'

'The pygmy puff.'

'I'm not sure,' Ginny countered. 'Besides, if you're not sure, we best do nothing. In any case, if I would meet a person who'd attach a pygmy puff to a bundle of keys like that, I'd hex 'em all the way to the bloody moon.'

'Glad I have someone with me who cares about animal rights.'

Ginny chuckled. 'Ah, well. I care about a lot of things.'

Hermione was distracted by the door. It opened and Dan was entering. The key cord was in his left hand, but the ball of fluff seemed to have been missing.

'Everything alright, Dan?' asked one of the men behind Ginny.

'I guess, yeah,' he replied.

'What do ye mean "I guess?" I hope ye got yer phone so we can look at that bird,' said a voice with an accent like Hagrid.

'Oh yeah, I got the phone,' said Dan. Hermione glanced at him. His phone was in his right hand, but his knuckles seemed.. sort of bruised. It was purple, and Hermione didn't remember the knuckles of his right hand to be purple.

'Oi, what did ye do?' said the same voice, also spotting Dan's bruises.

Dan looked at his left knuckles, put the phone in his left hand alongside his bundle of keys and hastily made up an excuse.

'Nothing.'

He sat down at the table and began drinking his beer. His friends seemed to be distracted by an amusing story told by Frankie.

Now it was Ginny's turn to glance at Hermione. Interest was furiously sparkling in her eyes. She wasn't doubting anymore.

'It's indeed a pygmy puff! It's so brave, fighting its way out of the hands of a Muggle.'

'Very brave, indeed,' said Hermione. She glanced at Ginny and then to Dan, who was unaware of the two women talking about him.

'He's got to be Obliviated, though.'

'Alright, alright, lady,' Ginny spoke, raising her hands. 'First, we'll eat this dinner. Second, I'd like to try some of that gelato. Third, we find the pygmy puff. I might keep her.'

'You're not going to keep her.'

'Oh.' Ginny's disappointment wasn't played.

The two witches finished their main plate in silence. This wasn't because of them pondering over the case itself, which they shove to the back of their minds for a moment, but because of the appetizing dishes. When they were finished, their plates got taken away almost immediately. Hermione glanced at Ginny while choosing the dessert. Their second glass of prosecco arrived.

'A different one than we had first,' Ginny noticed.

'That's because the one we had was especially for starters and dishes. This one's for the dessert and after.'

'Interesting,' Ginny replied. She swung her glass in circles while momentarily glimpsing backward.

'Dan looks a bit ill.'

'If you say so,' Hermione answered, glancing at Dan. He, indeed, showed signs of paleness. But whether that meant that he was sick or that he just downed a beer in less time than humanly possible was not clear for her.

Dessert was ready and Hermione had not expected Ginny's choice; a mere three scoops on a fancy plate, decorated with berry syrup. Ginny had called it 'very tasty' but Hermione couldn't help to wonder that she was accustomed to this back at the Burrow. Molly's preparations for dinner were unmatched. However, they were mostly monotone; Hermione had expected that Ginny took the opportunity to try something different this time. It didn't appear to be so.

In any case, it was irrelevant to her. Here they were, two good friends, eating together in a Muggle restaurant. A pygmy puff just got lost, and Ginny seemed so relaxed. As if it was the most normal thing in the world for her. Hermione wondered if she'd come home to Harry, and he would then say that there were, again, a dozen or so Dark wizards and witches planning to hunt him – would Ginny shrug her shoulders the same way and subsequently star in next day's Quidditch match?

Hermione was quick enough to realize the strangeness of her thoughts. Of course not, Ginny purely wanted to spend time with her; she wanted to push everything magic to back of her head. However, Ginny's mind wasn't at all cleared from the situation.

'Hmm,' murmured Ginny, scooping the last of bits of her ice cream. 'I leave immediately when you pay, and you give me a signal when they leave.'

'What do you mean, "when they leave"?'

'I'll cast a Suggestion spell on them, I told you,' Ginny replied. 'It's really easy. When they're outside we'll take Dan apart and have a little chat together.'

Hermione nodded. Ginny would know if it was a good plan, she thought. Brainlessly complying wasn't what she was fond of, and, she corrected herself, it wasn't so that she didn't rationalize this situation at all, but she'd rather finish this whole situation quickly then explaining tomorrow morning at the Office why she worried about 'something'.

They finished their desserts chit-chattering about nothing important. Hermione patiently waited until the waitress came and paid the bill. All the while both Ginny and Hermione kept a close watch on the table behind them. There was Frankie, still telling stories amusingly about his work as a labourer at an apparent nearby firm; the rest was obviously entertained by his stories, as Hermione reckoned their laughter as evidence for fulfillment. The only one who was silently hearing Frankie's tales was Dan, who was eating his main dish and taking a sip from his beer every now and then. It seemed to go unnoticed to the rest. However, not for Ginny and Hermione.

'Dan's sort of cagey,' she noticed. 'As if he's wary of something.'

'Think of what happened to him – a ball of fluff from his set of keys disappeared outside and left some scratches on him. I'd go mad too if I were a Muggle.'

'Easily erased, those wounds,' noticed Hermione. 'He seems to take it well, though.'

'Yes,' said Ginny. 'And I've formed a plan for taking him out.'

Hermione frowned. 'Taking him out? Is this the plan you were talking about?'

'Eh, no.'

'Well, whatever you've come up with; we're not giving him a concussion and leave him in a shady nearby alley.'

'What do you propose then? Walk up to him and say 'Hey, Dan, you lost a pygmy puff, oh, and by the way you're breaking every wizarding law in existence. Now tell us where the puff is.' Ginny's impersonation activated Hermione's desire to laugh, but she could luckily retain her lips straight.

Hermione bent over the table and glanced at Ginny. 'Dan's by car, isn't he? That's why he went outside.'

Ginny nodded.

'What if I let his car alarm go off and he needs to go outside?'

Ginny glanced outside, looking for Dan's car. 'How'd you know which one is his?'

Hermione smiled. She grabbed beside her chair, held her wand under the table and pointed it into the direction of the streets. She shot a look at a car right next to her and flicked it. All the parking spaces were taken – the row of cars stretched out as far as she could see.

Suddenly, a car directly opposite from them began to shriek; its alarm had gone off.

The noise immediately caught the attention from the guests in the restaurant. Not only Ginny looked at the car, but also the group of friends including Frankie, and most importantly, Dan.

An elderly looking man, some tables away from Hermione and Ginny, stood up and walked cursingly towards the exit.

'Ah, it's his car,' said Frankie behind Ginny. 'Thought it was yours, Dan.'

'Hmm?' Dan seemingly did not hear the honking of the car, even though almost everyone but him did a quick glance to the window.

'Oh,' he continued, recuperating and processing Frankie's question. 'No, mine's a bit more to the left; the green Skoda.'

Ginny shot a meaningful look at Hermione. The latter understood what had to be done and pressed her face as elegantly as possible at the window. Several vehicles were neatly lined up. They were mostly upper-class cars; a Lexus, several Mercedes-Benz cars, and a BMW shone in the night. They were all in a darker colour, as if they wanted to express elegance and, of course, prosperity. Hermione caught the emerald green Skoda in her vision. She had held her wand in her hand for the entire time and again silently cast a charm under her table. Ginny acted as if she didn't understand what happened.

For the second time, a car alarm went off. Dan was active this time, as he recognized the sound as being his.

'Bloody hell, some clown is setting off alarms. I'll be right back.'

Hermione nodded to Ginny and they stood up, just after Dan left the table and made their way to the door. Hermione clenched her wand in her jacket. Ginny had hers ready in her jacket, too as they exited the restaurant. Further away Dan was walking too his car. He had just crossed the road.

Ginny stood beside Hermione and cursed. 'His car's not that far from the restaurant. He'll be walking back quickly.'

'True. It's also parked right next to a park, so there's no secret alleyway we could sneak him in too and question him.'

Ginny sighed. She now too realised the situation; the parking was spots were majestic, as in so far you could call a parking spot majestic; London's characteristic buildings were on the background of the park, which was mostly dark, although dimly lit by various lantern poles on the side of several gravel paths.

'Why don't we just take him to a dark spot in the park?' Ginny said.

'I'm not a fan of that idea,' Hermione grumbled.

'Now, don't be picky,' Ginny said as she paced to Dan. He was standing near his car and was peeking inside. Hermione was following Ginny, crossing the road, She noticed that he was making himself ready to leave.

Ginny increased her pace into a small sprint. Dan was watching her approach. He was taken aback by her oncoming appearance. Hermione knew that Ginny would be at ease in a situation like this; although Dan was no brother of her, she had plenty of experience handling men who often didn't want and expect her questions. She knew how to play this game.

'Can you help me?'

'Sorry,' Dan stumbled. 'With what?'

'My car's alarm also went off. I think I saw the bellends, they ran off in the direction of the park,' said Ginny as she gestured towards the ink black surroundings of Eaton Square Gardens. Hermione, who was standing still behind a car at a reasonable distance, couldn't help but let out a wry smile at Ginny's plan. Of course, Dan would concede and help Ginny search the persons who possibly had damaged his car or were about to. She remembered how protective Harry was of his motorbike and car, as Ginny had told her several times, and Dan couldn't be any different. She glanced at the sky. Oh, boys.

'We … could take a look,' Dan replied. He was unaware of the nearing evil – or, as Hermione corrected her thoughts, it wasn't evil, it was more of a good deed for both sides. Dan sheepishly stepped into the dark, and Ginny followed slowly. Before disappearing in the dark paths of the Gardens, she glanced at Hermione. The look in her eyes told Hermione enough: "Follow me."

Hermione swiftly made her way to the spot where Ginny just vanished in the dark. Her heart was racing with excitement, this was fun, this was different than those endless piles of parchment at the Ministry – although she didn't find it that bad either. She continued the pace and stepped on the soft grass of the Gardens. Her view was pit-black, but as she stood still she could make out a voice, speaking softly like leafs flowing in the wind. She followed the sound as a kid follows the smell of a freshly baked pie. Hermione didn't need to follow the voice that instinctively; after a few seconds someone had noticed that she had entered the dark surroundings of the park, too.

'Come here, Hermione!' said a hissed voice.

It was abundantly clear that it was Ginny. Hermione walked into the direction of the voice. The figure was imminent.

'Is it safe here?'

'Yes,' the voice replied.

'Lumos.'

Hermione squealed as she saw the sight in front of her. Dan was holding her wand against her throat and was making unintelligible sounds. Ginny's eyes spoke relaxation, although Hermione wasn't sure at all if that was applicable according to the situation. Her own wand was pressed at her Adam's apple. Dan held the wand still as if he exactly knew what he was doing, but the opposite appeared to be true; he was holding the wand backward. Dan didn't appear to be surprised by Hermione's light. He was just grumbling and looking angry, very angry, at Ginny. The skin just below his left eye was bleeding. For an instant, Hermione was confused, but she acted immediately following the situation in front of her.

'Nox.'

Instantly a brawl between Ginny and Dan broke out in front of her. The only problem was that she couldn't see it; Hermione backed down, stumbled over the roots of a tree and crawled back. She was observing the sound of the bickering intensively in an attempt to gather information what was going on. A male voice could be shouted 'Ugh' followed by what appeared to be a choking sound. In contrast, a female voice was hissing 'You little prick'. Suddenly the noise stopped. Hermione stepped one foot forward to check what was going on but was backed off by several bats appearing out of nowhere. She understood what was going on and hurriedly made her way to the fight while saying 'Lumos'.

A light appeared and shone on Ginny's face, who was wiping her nose. She was alright at first sight; no harm done to her face and, thought Hermione as she lowered her wand to inspect the rest of Ginny's body, she had obtained no further harm.

'By Merlin, what did you do, Ginny?'

'See for yourself,' Ginny replied while looking at Dan.

Hermione moved her source of light from Ginny to Dan. At first instance she couldn't find Dan – he wasn't at eyesight, nor at a crouching level, but her confusion got erased when she saw him laying down on the ground, frozen.

'Wait, but I saw bats,' Hermione added confused.

'Yes, I fired some in a rapid pace.' Ginny let out a small smile. 'He's probably frozen because of Full Body-Bind Curse and the bats were, you know-'

'The Bat-Bogey Hex,' Hermione filled in. 'Poor Dan,' she said, looking at the man at the ground. She turned her head towards Ginny.

'I'm glad you're unhurt, but we can't question him now.'

Ginny stepped on the crisping grass and was checking the surroundings. Being caught right now wasn't something to particularly look forward to.

She stepped back and chewed on her words for a bit.

'I already did, though.'

'Really?' Hermione frowns were visible to Ginny, even though Hermione's was covered by her thick bush of hair.

'Yes.' Ginny walked around Dan, inspecting his condition.

As she was about to start her round-up of what happened, noises were heard from the street side. Ginny stepped in its direction and quickly peaked through the bushes. 'Dan's friends,' she said.

Hermione acted quickly. She cast the Disillusionment Charm on herself and Dan, and gestured Ginny urgingly to do the same. The latter joined Hermione and the still-petrified Dan at the spot where the curse had struck and waited silently. The noises seemed to come closer and the two ladies could make something of the figures who were peeking through the bushes and past the trees.

'He isn't here.'

'You're right.'

Ginny was hidden behind a tree, but used her wand and pointed it in the direction of the friends.

'We should go,' another voice promptly stated.

'Yeah,' said a voice the women recognised as Frankie. The men turned around and headed for the restaurant.

The Disillusionment Charm had worked. Ginny, still invisible, checked the park if Dan's friends were gone, but they seemed to be inside.

'Seems like your Charm has worked,' said Hermione.

'Thanks,' Ginny happily said. Her voice suddenly became serious. 'We need to alter their memories when we're done.'

'True,' sighed Hermione.

The situation was getting more problematic by the minute.


	2. Reservations

One could raise the question whether the two women had handled the situation well. Hermione's apartment at Highbury Cres was certainly cosy. And, yes, whoever would enter the apartment would recognise it as the home of a bibliophile – but was it right to Apparate there with a frozen, unknown Muggle at their side?

Ginny's appearance didn't matter at all, although she was beginning to be expected at her own apartment in Wales', which was property of the Holyhead Harpies. Hermione vaguely remembered something about being off for training tomorrow which put her mind a little bit more at ease. Ginny didn't care if her housemates would mind.

Hermione stopped looking at the pavement of Highbury Cres through the heart-patterned curtains and pointed her attention at the two people inside her house. Here was Dan, laying down on the couch, petrified – Disapparating was a bit of a hassle, but it had worked – with Ginny at his side. Dan could now murmur a yes (one 'hmm') or a no (two 'hmms') in response to her questions.

Much had become clear in the following half an hour since their confrontation in the Eaton Square Gardens. Ginny was able to tell her the latest information at her apartment. Dan was unaware of their conversation since they moved to the kitchen, which was separated from Hermione's living room. Ginny leaned against the counter, gratefully accepted Hermione's conjured cup with green tea and began her explanation.

'So – Dan here reckons he went on a date two nights ago with a woman, very charming, he assured me,' Ginny grinned, 'who, after a few drinks and some bites, persuaded him to go dancing somewhere in Soho.'

'So far nothing interesting,' Hermione noted.

'While dancing in the club he felt dizzy, almost ill-like, and fainted. He described it as if he was "drugged" ..' Ginny looked clueless.

'It means that you've taken or been given a hallucinating substance, voluntarily, or now it seems, unwillingly,' Hermione explained.

'Right..' Ginny coughed before continuing. 'Then he woke up in his bed, randomly, and it was dawn. On his right side in his bed was the pygmy puff – Dan reckoned it was moving, but he thought the movement was caused by the bed.' Hermione's eyes rolled.

Ginny laughed. 'I know, right? Anyhow,' she leaned closer to Hermione, 'the dimwit then attached the pygmy puff to his keys, since he didn't want to lose it, went to his work and drove straight to San Paolo after work for Frankie's birthday.'

Hermione glanced sheepishly at Ginny. She frowned back.

'Is there something?'

'You haven't had that much time with him,' Hermione noted. 'Yet you tell the story quite detailed..' Her upper teeth bit her lip.

'Oh, that's just because I asked yes/no questions to him, and I then filled it in myself,' Ginny nonchalantly replied. 'Our conversation in the park wasn't more than a "What the fuck are you doing?" from his side after he tried to kiss me for some reason.'

Hermione was startled. 'Sorry?'

'Yes, he really did try. That's why I was in that position, honestly – I was as confused as you were.'

'Ginny, I found you pressed against a tree, and he was putting your wand at your throat.'

'Backwards,' Ginny noted. 'But yes, very peculiar..'

Hermione again snorted in this disbelief. If Ginny hadn't been a Quidditch player she'd make a good Auror – if anything, she remained calm in extreme situations.

'Peculiar..' Hermione mumbled to herself, repeating the thought in her head.

She stared at her black electrical stove, in which light from the lamps was reflected. For a moment, she was wondering their situation would be perceived when it'd be known to the wizarding world. A small, vicious part of the Magical community would ask for their throats to be sliced, but the overwhelming majority would ask for hers and Ginny's wand – and to not be returned indefinitely.

Ginny made her way back to the living room to keep an eye on Dan when it dawned on Hermione. When having said 'Lumos' and being a direct witness of the situation Ginny was in, Dan had looked remarkably relaxed. He was angry, yes, but composed. Moreover, he used the wand as a threat, as a device to do harm. She had not yet encountered any Muggle who was able to understand directly what a wand's use was for witches and wizards. Dan would be the first. Unless he was under the influence of a curse...

Hermione walked into the living room and saw Ginny watching Dan. She was sitting on the couch. Hermione sat beside her.

'I think he's under the Imperius Curse,' she said quietly.

Ginny looked to her. 'How do we know?'

'Well, we can see if he gets aggressive when you question him about – how did he become aggressive suddenly again?'

Ginny held her breath for a second, pondering about the exact moment. 'When I asked if he wasn't hurt – he had some kind of cut on his right arm, I could see it in the light of a street lantern. He.. he.. became very defensive of himself suddenly. I figured it was because of the pygmy puff, I wanted to use it as some form of a hint to ask for it..'

'I didn't know he had a cut on his arm,' Hermione replied. 'He only had scratches on his knuckles.'

Ginny stood up from the couch and walked towards Dan. Still laying down frozen, his eyes were constantly fixated on the ceiling. Ignoring this, Ginny rolled up Dan's right sleeve and peeked at his elbow joint. Hermione watched her closely.

'Is that..?' Hermione took a closer look at the cut. It wasn't a random cut; it appeared to be in some sort of shape, although it was obvious that it was cut in a rush. There were four sides; at first glance, it seemed to be a cubicle. Then, however, Hermione corrected herself that it looked more like a diamond.. a lozenge. She peaked closer.

'Is "that" what?' Ginny asked, but she closed her mouth because of Hermione's concentrated look.

A few more seconds were needed before Hermione confirmed to herself that it was indeed a lozenge. However, whereas a lozenge has straight lines between the points where it connects to other lines to form its shape, these lines were curved inwards, as it were. Still, it didn't look like its purpose was to "scoop" out the skin in the middle of the lozenge. It appeared that the lines were cut in four ... stages.

Hermione shot a look at Ginny and told her her considerations.

'You know better than me what we need to do with this,' she replied when Hermione had finished. She sat on an arm of Hermione's reading chair. 'I can stay here for the night, but I need to leave tomorrow. What do we do with Dan? We still need to alter his friends' memories a little, not to forget his.' Ginny's eyes met Dan's body. He let out a high 'hmm'.

Hermione walked to a cupboard and took out her mobile phone. She asked Ginny to show his cut and took a photo. A flash filled the living room for a millisecond.

'Jesus, what's that?' Ginny said, looking at the phone.

'A mobile phone, Gin.'

'No, the flash of light.'

'Oh,' answered Hermione, suddenly concentrating on her conversation with Ginny rather than looking at her just-taken picture of Dan's cut.

'It's just flash, I use it to make the image brighter, so I can see the cut better.'

'Ah,' said Ginny, suddenly focusing on Dan. He was rapidly moving his eyeballs and was breathing very heavily. Hermione turned down her phone and watched Dan cautiously.

'Is he reacting to the flash?' Ginny asked.

'Possibly,' Hermione said as she shuffled herself in a position to get a closer look to Dan. He was shivering, although not extremely, since he was petrified.

'Get to the cupboard next to the dining table and take out a wooden box called which has "Essentials" written on it,' she said, tilting her head and softly caressing Dan's face. He was beginning to vibrate silently – it was a very eerie view. Ginny was alarmed and urged to the cupboard.

'Get out a bezoar, break it in half and give me the bottle labeled "Murtlap Essence", quickly!' Hermione's words spoke urgency and Ginny raced around in the box to found them. She rushed to aid Hermione, but she simply held her left hand out, in Ginny's direction.

'Give me the bezoar.'

Ginny put the bezoar in Hermione's hand. The latter turned around.

'I know what I'm doing,' she said, immediately returning to Dan's face. He was still in obvious distress; Hermione wasn't sure whether he was fully conscious.

'Okay,' she sighed and wove her wand. 'Liquescius Totalus.'

Dan's body relaxed instantly; however, after one second it started shaking increasingly heavily. Unable to respond coherently, he simply let out murmurs while his body shook violently. Hermione quickly put down her wand and shoved the bezoar in his mouth, pushed it as far as she could while she hissed: 'Swallow, swallow!'

Dan needed several attempts before he swallowed the bezoar. It had a visible effect after five seconds; his arms started to relax, only his torso was shivering. After a minute, he was lying still, his eyes closed. He let out a gasp.

'It's okay,' Hermione assured Dan. She put her right hand on his chest and turned her head to Ginny. 'Hand me the bottle.'

Hermione freed both her hands from Dan and applied the Essence to Dan's wound. She bit her lip. The wound was healing, but not fully. The magic was darker than she expected.

'And?' Ginny said. She was simultaneously frightened and impressed.

Hermione stood up.

'He's been cursed, and properly. I believe the reaction to the flash was an after effect of that curse.. and it is separate from his wound. She took Dan's arm and showed it to Ginny. 'I applied Murtlap's Essence to it and it hasn't healed properly. It works for most wounds inflicted by curses, but this..' she shook her head. 'If Harry's Dark Detectors would be in this room, they'd be off the charts.'

'Where … am … I?'

The soft voice of Dan soothed the tension of Ginny and Hermione completely; they were now focused on him. Regaining consciousness, the two women kneeled with him.

Hermione took out her wand.

'Obliviate.'

Ginny scowled at her. Hermione glared back but said nothing to Ginny. Instead, she directed her words at Dan.

'You've been found on the street in a not so well-condition, we're treating you a bit for now and then we'll take you to the hospital. You're relaxed and don't worry since you are in safe hands. Now, go sleep.'

Dan's eyes closed following Hermione's last words. A silence followed.

'Why?' Ginny blurt out.

'It's in accordance with the International Statue of Secrecy,' Hermione responded. She stood up and walked to the kitchen and came back with tea. Ginny accepted a cup. Hermione waved her wand and a teapot poured tea into her coup.

'We need to let Harry know,' Hermione said.

Ginny's eyes still sparked uncertainty, but she decided not to voice it.

'And Ron.'

'Eh, Ginny-'

'He's an Auror,' Ginny interrupted. 'If you tell Harry, the Auror Office will look into this for sure.'

Hermione looked down at Dan. 'We need to take him to St. Mungo's.'

'We will,' Ginny assured Hermione. As a sign of comfort, she put her hand on her right arm.

Hermione showed a wry smile. Ginny gave her a quick, firm hug and looked at her, smiling.

She stepped a few feet back and picked the bottle of Murtlelap Essence of the ground. 'Funny stuff,' she said as she walked to the cupboard and put it back in Hermione's box made out of oak wood.

'Got the idea from Fred and George, really,' said Hermione. Ginny swallowed hearing Fred's name. 'It solved their problem with some jinxes caused by their Skiving Snackboxes.'

Hermione stared out the window.

'It doesn't make any sense.'

Her eyes and Ginny's met. She knew Ginny wanted an explanation for her remark.

'He was under the Imperius Curse.. and you Petrified him.. however, he was still shivering after the flash from my mobile phone.' Hermione held her Muggle phone in her right hand and started to think really deep. Did she ever bewitch this phone? She knew the answer: No. Muggle phones were something she didn't take to the wizarding world; if she did that, it'd implode and she had to buy a new one. She turned her phone around in her hand. This was her fourth one.

Ginny let her eyes rest on Hermione's. Her look was sweet and spoke pure comfort; a gulf of relaxation waved through Hermione. It was at times like this that she knew perfectly well what Harry saw in Ginny, and what made her such a dear friend.

'It'll be alright.'

Hermione smiled in agreement.

Ginny gestured towards Dan. 'But this Casanova needs to go to St. Mungo's. Let's ring them up.'

Hermione did by using her Mugglephone. Five minutes later two medics arrived at Highbury Cres 7C and were let in by Ginny.

'Good night, ladies-'

The medics saw Ginny Weasley standing in their doorway.

'Ginny Weasley,' blurted the other medic.

They weren't that surprised to find Hermione Granger inside. The medics took account of Dan's medical condition, complimented Hermione on handling the situation and ensured that they would take care of him at the hospital.

The medics said that, if the Aurors needed him, he would be at the fourth floor; Spell-Induced Injuries. They were to speak to Dr. Pranay when they arrived. Ginny and Hermione thanked the medics and, after they alongside with them had safely Apparated to St. Mungo's using a very strange looking hospital bed with straps for Dan, they were left alone at Highbury Cres 7C.

Hermione closed the door and shove the locks in the right place. She leaned against the door, visibly exhausted. Ginny appeared in the hallway, too, as if she could sense that Hermione's powers were at a lower level.

'Not the greatest idea to wipe Dan's memories. He doesn't know anything now.'

'I know,' said Hermione as she bit her lip. She prompted a silence.

'We still need to alter the memories of Frankie and his "lads",' Ginny said.

Hermione nodded and walked past Ginny into the living room. She put her Muggle phone and Mirrorphone in her purse, opened the cupboard and put Murtlap Essence in her bag.

'Shall we go?' she said, glancing at Ginny. The latter had conjured herself a bright yellow raincoat. It was fashionable, no doubt, but was it sensible for what they were going to do? Hermione always wondered if Muggles remembered stuff better what they weren't supposed to know if wizards and witches who Obliviated them wore strange clothes.

Ginny smiled at Hermione. 'Nice, isn't it? Now they'll recognise me.'

'Sorry?'

'I cast a Suggestion Spell,' Ginny replied. 'They will be looking for a lady in a yellow raincoat.'

'Oh,' Hermione let out, silently complimenting Ginny's wit.

'But where? I'm just realising this, but they could be anywhere. The place's easy to reach by Muggle metro, they could've been all over London by now..'

'..Except they won't,' said Ginny. She seemed meticulously pleased with herself. 'They will stick around.' She peered at her left wrist. 'The watch says it's just a little bit after 10 PM. They should be in a pub around the Eaton Square Gardens.' Hermione sighed.

Ginny, too, was silent and took Hermione by the arm. Ginny concentrated on a dark spot in the Eaton Square Gardens as they vanished from her apartment. The room instantly became black; the darkness swallowed the dying lights of Hermione's lamps.

The Gardens were quiet. The little light that there was made the park look picturesque, Monet-like, but that was the least of the worries for Ginny and Hermione. They swung their heads behind a bush and tried to observe to the road on which San Paolo was located; they saw it right in front of them. There were still several customers inside, but not as much as when they had eaten there. Slowly, they walked over a paved path in the middle of the park, so Hermione estimated, as they scanned the surrounding pubs and restaurants.

'We're not gonna find them if we keep staying outside,' Hermione said, crossing the street to walk on the pavement. They walked past several pubs and restaurant, peeking inside and appearing to be interested in the menu. The latter didn't work; they were frequently told the kitchen was closing, as Hermione already knew, but it was at least a genuine way to fake interest.

As there was no one at a Thai takeaway and again no one of interest at a Greek restaurant, they tried their luck at a pub; the sign above the entrance said Oxly Bar and it appeared to be the only regular British pub in the street. The rest of the bars were appeared to be mostly for upper-class people, the sort of people that assigned two meanings to 'Coke'.

'Let's try our luck here,' said Ginny, stepping in first. The pub was moderately full; two tables were free near the toilets. The bar was not entire filled, too. Several seats were free and Ginny and Hermione eagerly sat on them as they tried to make eye contact with the bartender.

Ginny flipped her hair as nonchalantly as possible to draw attention from the bartender. He noticed and approached her, faking a glee smile.

'Can I help you?' he said, eyeing Ginny with more interest than is socially acceptable for a bartender.

'Yes – we're looking for a group of guys who might've passed by? Strong, tall guys?' Ginny broadened her shoulders as an imitation of Dan's friends.

'I didn't see any broad lads lurkin' around here tonight,' the bartender replied. 'But a small group of guys who came in here did insist they were looking for a girl with a yellow raincoat.' He pointed at Ginny's sunny coloured Mackintosh.

'Where did they go?' Hermione chimed in.

'Somewhere along this road. They went to, uh,' the bartender closed his eyes for a brief moment, 'Elsa's Courtyard. It's near Cadogan Hall, not far from here.'

'They told you?' said Ginny.

The bartender scratched his head. 'Yes.. quite loud, actually. I don't know why.'

Hermione and Ginny were discussing where to go as they exited. The group of guys had certainly been at Oxly Bar, but went to another pub, a few streets away from Eaton Street; Ginny and Hermione's walk took no longer than five minutes. They scanned the streets during their walk, sparsely proposing ways as to Obliviate them all swiftly.

'We just walk them into an alley, but then block the entrances on both sides. We use the Freezing Charm to immobilise them. Then we only need to perform the Memory Charm. Done is done.'

Hermione nodded at Ginny's plan. It sounded profound and was quite well-thought; the only thing on her mind that was seriously pressing to her was the state the group of guys was in. Were they aggressive? It'd be a serious problem if they were drunk. Hermione knew of some spells that could induce drunkness but spells sobering humans up were not known to her. She didn't know how the group of guys was going to react. She shot a look at Ginny. She was surprisingly calm as if it was a casual Sunday night stroll through a bunch of streets in her own neighbourhood. Her yellow raincoat was an eye catcher, and Dan's friends would certainly recognise her first; it was up to Hermione to perform the spells so they could safely and effectively be Obliviated.

They agreed on this plan. While entering D'Oyley St they spotted several groups on both sides of the street. Ginny appeared to be especially interested in a group of people standing a few feet nearby, on the other side of the road, but Hermione convinced her to first trust the bartender's word and check Elsa's Courtyard. After strolling around on the pavement and avoiding drunkards, they found themselves staring down an arch with a sign bearing their destination. Under the arch an alley led them to turn right to a beer garden; a light was dimly visible from afar.

Ginny paced forward into the dark alley and Hermione followed.

'I have a weird hunch about this,' Ginny remarked.

'Me too,' said Hermione. She stopped for a second, turned around towards the arch where they had just entered, and conjured a magical protection in the archway. Ginny added a Muggle-Repelling Charm.

The beer garden was practically deserted. It wasn't that nobody would sit in such an environment at this time, just that it was cold for this time of year. Hermione glanced inside and saw various guests inside the pub. It was bigger than she expected, as the beer garden was of a modest size. As agreed, she waited outside for Ginny to come back with the group of guys. If they were inside, that was.

'Don't make a mess, Ginny,' Hermione said stone-faced.

Ginny winked, pulled up the collar of her yellow raincoat and entered Elsa's Courtyard. Hermione stayed outside, While buttoning up her jacket she observed the surroundings; the beer garden was surrounded by tall, buildings which could be found in various English towns. Brick, built without the slightest hint of inspiration. Solid, yes, but substantially boring. Hermione focused her attention on the walls, checking if there were any walls or gaps in which they could be overheard. She cast a Muffliato charm cautiously just in case.

Hermione again peeked inside the pub and saw a yellow raincoat approaching the door, coming closer and finally pushing the door open. It couldn't be that easy, right? Were they that drunk? Or, for that matter, _that_ willing? Ginny was beaming happily, shouting along the group of men that followed her.

'We finally found you!' shouted one.

'Ye', we've been waiting on you for ages!' cheered another.

'I know, I know guys,' replied Ginny, while making eye contact with Hermione. She understood it as a sign to magically seal off the entrance of the pub's interior and sneaked behind the last man to the group. She sealed the door with relative ease; everyone inside the pub was busily practicing having a good time or at least an attempt to it. On the other side, Ginny was chit-chatting with the group of guys.

Hermione eyed them carefully. She recognised a few of them. Certainly, Frankie was there. She eyed at the short, brown-haired fat guy. He was wearing a Hollister t-shirt, baggy pants and his hairstyle screamed "Middle-aged disaster". Hermione thought she recognised the other two.

Walking from the door towards the group of men, she held her wand at the ready. Ginny saw her and nodded slightly. In a swift move, Hermione flicked her wand.

'Immobulus.'

Dan's friends instantly froze. Ginny quickly glanced at all the faces, and it was no doubt they'd show horror and uncertainty. Hermione ignored their her-imagined icy feelings and emotions.

'Cast the Memory Charm.'

Hermione walked a half circle to Ginny and became face-to-face with the group. Frankie was frozen in an amusing expression of standing on one foot; it reminded Hermione of a flamingo, but then the slightly less elegant version. She glanced at Ginny, who was waiting for her to be ready to Obliviate the three guys. Hermione acknowledged Ginny's intention and bent her head slightly up and down.

They both focused, wands stretched forward, and a light, blue stream sprung from the tip of their wands and danced through the air to Dan's friends. Their eyes became empty; they stared through Ginny and Hermione.

Once they were done they lifted up the Freezing Charm. The group of guys was standing there, aimlessly. Frankie was looking around, clearly pondering about where they where.

'Go inside.'

Ginny's words ensured that they came into action. Hermione saw them walking into the pub. Slowly, they started chatting again as if nothing had happened and everything was normal. Of course, it wasn't, but to Hermione and Ginny it was.

The women turned around and lifted the rest of the enchantments on their way back. Ginny had conjured another coat. This time it was red and could be buttoned up to her neck. Hermione complimented her jokingly for thinking it through; if anything, Dan's friends wouldn't recognise her in any case.

'Thanks,' Ginny said, faking a laugh.

Hermione noticed she was a bit down.

'Why are you sad?'

'I'm not sad,' Ginny replied as they walked under the archway. They stopped for a moment as wondering where they go; they decided to walk around for a bit more and then stop at the tube station in Sloane and depart ways there.

Ginny changed the subject back and answered Hermione's question.

'It's just that we haven't seen the pygmy puff. For all, we know it could be wandering on its own, out in the dark.'

'Nature can be cruel,' Hermione said.

'But pygmy puffs are so small,' Ginny meeked. 'It'll get eaten so quickly.'

Hermione was about to answer her when realisation struck.

'Ginny.. maybe it wasn't a pygmy puff at all. Have you ever heard of a pygmy puff that bites or scratches?'

'No.'

'Also,' continued Hermione while they turned a corner, 'he didn't have those scratches when we took care of him at my apartment.'

Ginny stopped. She looked Hermione in the eyes but started walking slowly.

'Really?'

'Yes. Remember his diamond-shaped cut?'

'I do,' replied Ginny. 'It didn't go away.'

'Yes. But I checked both his arms and he only had that cut. Apart from the small wound near his eye, he didn't have any scratches on both his knuckles.'

'It can't be!' said Ginny.

'But you don't you see,' answered Hermione, gesturing wildly. 'Dan walks to his car and gets a scratch on his arm. He walks back after I set the alarm on his car; has a cut on his arm.'

'D'you reckon something is in his car?'

'I honestly have got no clue,' said Hermione. 'But we can take a look. His car should still be in the same spot as it was.'

They walked down a few streets to get on Eaton St and made their to for the Gardens; they were not far apart. Eaton St was one of those streets you wanted to live in your wildest dreams. The houses didn't have a big front porch or a big amount of space; they did have, however, a huge price tag. That was all that mattered these days. Hermione's thoughts rambled on over this topic for a little while, so that she had to be put out of her chain of thought by Ginny.

They were at the very same place they had been before twice already; this time there were fewer cars parked in the destined spots. Ginny quickly recognised the car. It was an old, battered car whose only purpose was to bring its seated from A to B – like a car should.

Hermione took out her wand and muttered charms to search for Dark Magic. It proved unsuccessful. Meanwhile, Ginny was walking around the vehicle to check whether there was anything suspicious inside. She leaned to a door and pulled the handle. To her surprise, it sprung open. Hermione concentrated on her Dark Magic spells and shot a look at Ginny.

'What are you doing?'

Ginny shrugged her shoulders but entered the car nonetheless. She sat on the driver's seat and touched the steering wheel. Nothing happened. Next, she put her hands under the car seat, checking if there was anything suspicious. Judging by her further research on anything interesting in the car Hermione deemed it proven that there was nothing under the car seat. Ginny was looking for an opening she could find. She moved to the co-driver's seat and put her hand on the handle of the glove box right in front of her. Hermione finally looked away to check whether there was anything weird on the outside of the vehicle. Perhaps, the tires...

'Hermione!' hissed Ginny.

Hermione looked up and rushed to Ginny. She was sitting at the same place she had been, but had her hand on a handle to open the glove compartment in front of her. She tried to click it as for it to open, but that didn't work.

'I can't get it open,' she said.

'I see.'

After a preliminary check for signs of Dark Magic Hermione tried to open it herself; she couldn't. It wasn't that difficult, she guessed, it was just irreconcilable with the material itself. That seemed fragile and easy to open as any other glove box in a car. But this one didn't.

She bit her lip and glanced at the handle.

'Alohomora.' The handle didn't move a twitch.

'Do you think it has the Anti-Alohomora Charm on it?' Ginny suggested.

'Possibly. But there's always a way to bypass that,' replied Hermione. 'Get out of the car for a second.'

Ginny got out and stood behind Hermione. The latter waved her wand around in a complex way, muttering words in an explicit spoken manner, all pointed at the handle of the glove compartment.

'Revelo Portaberto!'

The handle lit up green. Hermione glanced at it; her spell had shown her where to press and or pull to open the glove compartment. Instead, Ginny had tried open it, and it didn't work. Were they being fooled by something simple? Weren't they just simply strong enough to open the glove box?

Hermione asked Ginny to try to get it open - by force. Ginny was well-muscled; a direct effect of being a professional Chaser for Holyhead Harpies. She tried it twice, but it didn't work – as did slamming on the dashboard out of frustration. Ginny was visibly irritated.

'Bloody handle!'

Hermione moved away from the car door and looked up to the sky. What if they were being fooled and the trick to open was just plain and simple? She remembered Harry's snitch, who opened after Harry kissed it – logical if you think that it was that snitch he caught by swallowing it. The solution for this had to be simple, too. Could it be that..?

She leaned forward into the doorframe and redirected Ginny to stay seated.

'Pull the handle when I say Alohomora.'

'But that wouldn't work,' replied Ginny. 'It's too simple.'

'That's why it'll work.'

Hermione took out her wand and wove it accordingly. 'Alohomora.'

Ginny pulled the handle simultaneously and opened the glove box. The inside was a bright blue; their faces were lit up by something in the compartment itself. The inside was covered in a weird form of isolation; in the middle was a stone, ancient looking, glowing bright blue. It shone stronger every few seconds.

Hermione gestured Ginny not to touch it.

'What do we do we it, then?'

'This,' Hermione sighed as she stared at the oval stone, 'is a problem for the Auror Office.'


	3. Unconcealed

The sun was reaching its highest point that day as Harry Potter rubbed his eyes in Underground London. Still, the sun shone in his eyes. A view from a room from The Shard was projected on his magical window in his room in one of the corridors of the Auror Office. It wasn't a huge room, but it was good enough for the job. He rubbed his hands and peeked around. Ron was sitting opposite of him on his own desk. When Harry heard from Head Auror Gailbard that they'd be sharing a room, he was skeptical. Okay, he knew Ron very well – he was his best mate – and they had spent a lot of their lives together. But Ron's rambling and nitpicking over every single little stuff became very annoying from time to time. Besides, Harry knew that every Monday Ron was moody again – a reminder that someone who supports the Chudley Cannons doesn't do it for fun.

Harry couldn't stop looking around. He had gotten the briefing this morning, with all important news and information in the wizarding world for Aurors and Magical Law Enforcement officers. He was alarmed. Or, rather, relieved. See, for several weeks the Auror Office had investigated cases of Muggles waking up at places different from where they went to sleep. This wasn't a case of sleepwalking, mind you. The Muggles were found miles, sometimes several or, in a special case, hundreds of miles away from their beds. At first glance it appeared to be to some sort of a joke and sometimes it was treated as such in the Auror Office, but Harry had an odd hunch about it. The cases kept reappearing, generally once a week. It had been ongoing for several months now.

Today, however, marked the seventh day of no disappearance. Harry read his sheet of paper again. It wasn't there. A case of a missing wizard in Northampton was the most important information of the day, but as Harry scanned the less urgent texts he found nothing else than several announcements from the Auror Office itself.

'Ron, have you read the briefing?'

'Hmm?' Ron was stuffing his lunch in his mouth at an alarming rate.

'The briefing,' Harry repeated. 'Have you read it?'

Ron waited several moments for replying, swallowing a big chunk of his tuna sandwich.

'Yes mate, why?'

'Nothing about the Muggles found many miles from the place they last said to go to sleep, right?'

'No … I don't think so.' Ron needed to think. 'Why?'

'It's the seventh day with no news about these disappearances.'

'So?' Ron answered. 'Gives us time to do other things. More days off. I've been really useful to George helping him with the shop in the past few days.'

Harry smiled. Ron liked to work at Weasley Wizard's Wheezes.

'You don't understand, Ron.'

'Of course, I understand! Normally something would've happened, right?'

' … Yes.' Harry's tone was intended to be neutral, but he couldn't hide a little worry in it.

'Well,' said Ron, noticing the uncertainty in Harry's voice. 'We'll see what happens.'

Ron finished eating his lunch in silence. Harry reviewed another case. It wasn't particularly important and the topic of conversation between him and Ron earlier was still on top of his mind when reading.

They both looked up when the door opened. Head Auror Gailbard came in. His voice was monotone and his message short.

'Potter. Office.'

Gailbard left immediately and left the door open. Ron shot a look at Harry, urging him to go. He silently stood up and walked out of his room towards Gailbard's office. It was at the end of the hall, instantly recognisable for employees and visitors alike.

Harry entered Gailbard's office. He was sitting in his chair, his arms folded. Gailbard was staring at a paper in front of him. He looked up when Harry came in and gestured him to sit opposite of him.

'Harry,' he began. 'It seems that your friend Hermione Granger has brought a very … interesting object into the Forensic Office.'

Harry was taken aback. What had Hermione done? He only thought she and Ginny had a fun night out, not going on some field trip.

'Sorry?'

'Hermione Granger,' repeated Gailbard. 'Has taken a very unusual object to our Forensic Office. A gemstone. They're researching it now, but I want you in on the case.'

'Why?' asked Harry. 'I'm not particularly knowledgeable of gemstones.'

Gailbard showed a wry smile.

'I know. However, it'd be good to have you there, since miss Granger is the one who brought the gemstone in. Communicating well with her will be of great importance. I can trust you on that, right?'

'Y-yes.'

'Good,' said Gailbard. 'I know miss Granger is Ron's girlfriend, but I'm gonna put him on the case too. You're gonna work together as a team. He looked far too happy eating his sandwich.'

Harry nodded, unsure if Gailbard was joking, and stood up.

'Thanks.'

'Report when you have anything interesting,' replied Gailbard, waving his door open with his wand. 'And make sure Weasley doesn't do anything stupid.'

Harry nodded again and couldn't help to smile a little. It was peculiar. He had never seen Gailbard happy, or at least this happy. Must've been one of his mood swings. Deep inside Harry knew that Gailbard was under a lot of pressure from time to time. Harry figured that he had to be relieved that there was no disappearance (and reappearance) of Muggles – for the seventh day in a row.

Napkins were the only witnesses of the sandwich massacre Ron had committed when Harry entered their room. He knew he always ate a bunch, four or five, but today Harry believed he had outperformed himself. Ron was sitting in his chair, his head tilted back, rubbing his belly.

'Ron, come with me.'

Ron's hand was still caressing his tummy as he shot at look at Harry.

'Maybe later mate … my stomach is turned upside down at the moment.' He let out a gasp of air.

'We need to see Fray.'

'Forensic Office?' Ron asked, suddenly interested. 'Why?'

'Because your girlfriend has brought in a special object, apparently.'

'No Ron, I'm sure it isn't your engagement ring,' continued Harry laughing. Ron's face was full of horror because of Harry's reply. He tried to assure him.

'It's a gemstone.'

Harry walked away and expected to hear Ron's footsteps as a sign that he was following him. However, he didn't hear any. Harry turned around, paced to their room again and saw Ron still sitting in his chair.

'It was a sign of you to come with me. Now, come.' Harry's tone was firm. Ron understood the message. He stood up, yawned and sulkily walked behind him on their way to the Forensic Office.

Whedella Fray was Head of the Auror Forensic Office. The Forensic Office employed a number of different people, including Healers and Magic Photographers. However, its function varied; from determining the cause of death of a wizard or witch who died under suspicious circumstances (hence the Healers and photographers) to determining, unjinxing and securing old, magical artifacts from unknown origin.

Fray oversaw this all. Harry and Ron knew her well. She was amicable but had mood swings from time to time. This meant that you didn't know whether she'd be happy when you talked to her. Or, if she'd be, she could turn moody in a second. Luckily, she was good at her work. Some even called her excellent. Fray received training as a Healer but was now trained in the various work the Forensic Office did. Harry and Ron found her in the lab, where she was examining the gemstone.

It was still lighting up blue, shining stronger every now and then. The stone was magically preserved in a glass cage and levitating in the air. Fray was up close, almost with her face pressed onto the glass and examining the artifact. She didn't turn her head when Harry and Ron entered.

'Potter … Weasley. Welcome.'

They wanted to approach her, but Fray gestured them to stop.

'Don't approach closely.'

'Why?' blurted Ron out. 'You're practically pressing your face against the glass, surely it'd be safe for us.'

'You'd think,' replied Fray. She turned away from the gemstone and faced the Aurors. 'But it's a very interesting artifact. It doesn't look special at first, but when you put a few diagnostic and research spells over it … oh boy.'

Harry was put off by her last two words. She sounded American, and it was in stark contrast with the happy and overly British witch standing in front of them.

'What did you find?' he said as he tried to regain his focus on the artifact.

'I didn't find anything myself, I was in my office,' she answered as she glanced seductively at Harry. Ron rolled his eyes. 'Bolsius examined it first when it came in.'

'Bolsius?'

'He's our specialist in Magical Artefacts,' Fray explained Harry.

'Right. So, what did he find?'

Fray giggled. 'Nothing.'

Ron glanced uncertainly at Harry. He gave him a questionable look.

'So why is it interesting?' Ron said.

Fray walked around the table on which the glass cage stood. She was eyeing the stone with interest.

'Well, normally a few spells show whether the stone contains magic, be it either dark or non-dark. But this … stone … is special. It doesn't show us anything. It's like a closed book which doesn't want to unveil itself. We tried anything, even the experimental Dark-Magic detectors your brother is working on,' she glanced at Ron, 'but our efforts proved futile. It's … frustrating, but remarkable at the same time.'

'Hold on,' replied Ron. 'This gemstone is closing itself off for anyone who seeks information about it?'

Harry nodded. 'I think so.'

Fray smiled. 'As far as we know, it isn't hurtful. Miss Granger didn't have any wounds whatsoever when she brought it in. We checked her, but she's alright.'

'Where is she?' Ron said. 'I'd like to see my girlfriend.'

'At her place.'

'Best we see her first,' Harry said to Ron. He turned his head back to Fray. 'We can question her exactly where she got it from. Do you know anything about that?'

'Only basic information. She knows the full details herself very well.'

Harry and Ron briefly thanked Fray and walked out of the lab.

'Always a bit uncomfortable seeing her, isn't it?' Ron remarked.

Harry shrugged his shoulders. 'It wasn't that bad today.'

'True,' said Ron. 'Now, let's see where Hermione is.'

He took out his Mirrorphone and said 'Hermione'. A waiting screen appeared and within a few seconds Hermione's face was visible on the screen.

'Hi, Ronald.'

'Hermione. Harry's with me. We're on the case of the blue gemstone you found. We want to inquire about it. Ask you a few questions. Auror business'

'Stop acting like a detective,' snapped Hermione. Harry thought he could hear a smile in Hermione's voice.

'Beg my pardon, madam,' teased Ron. 'Are you at your place?'

'As a fact, I'm not, but I can come for an hour or so. I've almost finished work for today, so I've got time to draft a few new proposals - after we've met.'

'It's not even 2 PM,' Ron countered.

'So? By the way, Ginny's still at my place. We need to meet soon, she needs to go back to Wales tonight.'

Harry glanced at Ron. 'I'll see you soon then. Bye.'

Hermione replied the same and Ron shove his Mirrorphone in his pocket. Harry was glancing at him. Ron got an awkward vibe.

'Is there anything?'

'No,' replied Harry. 'It's just a bit odd that Ginny hasn't told me anything about this, but that'll be unintentional, I'm sure.'

'For sure,' Ron confirmed. They made their way through the corridors and set off to Highbury Cres.

* * *

'Boys.'

Ginny Weasley eyed her wine with suspicion. Harry smiled looking at his girlfriend. Ron and he had come to visit for work, but it turned to be chit-chat. Hermione didn't like this, though. She sparsely spoke and, if she did, it was only a few words. It was obvious that Ginny took everything less serious – as did Ron. Something with family.

The chatter about non-important stuff continued for a few minutes when Hermione cleared her throat.

'Harry. Ron. The stone.'

'Right, Hermione,' replied Ron awkwardly. 'Tell me about it.'

Hermione told them the story, from the beginning until the end. It was as only Hermione could tell. Precise, nuanced and never skipping a beat. Ginny thicked the story by mocking Dan's group of friends or the bartender who tried to seduce her. Oh, and of course Dan, who tried to kiss her before holding a wand to her throat.

'But he held it the wrong way!' she said, chuckling.

'Why didn't you tell me anything, Ginny?' said Harry promptly. Ginny was silent.

'I …' Ginny blushed. 'Simply forgot. Fell asleep, read the Quidditch Weekly. It wasn't until Hermione said you two were coming over that I realised that it wasn't a normal happening.'

Ron eyed Harry as Ginny answered Harry's question. Harry briefly glanced back, catching Ron's message that Ginny was sincere. His gut feeling told him something else. Something had been bothering him, something between Ginny and him, and the most frustrating thing was that he couldn't exactly figure out what.

Harry was thrown back into reality as he caught Ginny's glance after she finished her sentence. He nodded. 'It's okay.'

But maybe not.

Hermione was oblivious to Harry's doubts. It looked as if she doubted Harry and Ron. She always thought of them as friends on a trip, rather than a team of Aurors.

'Let me recap this,' said Ron. 'About the stone,' he added quickly to avoid confusion.

'The gemstone's in the car for the entire time. This Dan bloke walks to it … twice?'

Hermione nodded. 'Yes. Although I'm not sure whether he went for it those two times. We only found it with him not nearby. He was already in St. Mungo's when we found the stone.'

'So …' said Harry, as a change of topic. 'That didn't affect him.'

'Not as we know of. You know of.' Hermione glanced at Harry.

Ron levitated more wine in his glass as he, in his turn, shot a look at Ginny. 'Anything else that might be of interest to us?'

Ginny glanced back, smiling. Harry suspected she was about to fall in a train of random stories about their adventure. However, her answer was surprisingly cohesive.

'Yes. Pygmy puffs.'

Ginny looked at Hermione. She understood Ginny's signal.

'Ginny and I thought we saw a pygmy puff.'

'Where?'

'At Dan's keycord.'

'Wha'?' replied Ron as he spat out some of his wine. 'Keycord? Is he bloody mad?!'

'We thought so too. But it was there. After he went to the car for the first time he didn't have the pygmy puff anymore. He only had scratches on his knuckles. We thought that that was a sign that the pygmy puff had escaped.'

Ron grinned. 'Interesting, innit?'

Harry looked at him, unsure whether Ron was actually amused by the story or genuinely interested.

'It's a good story,' he began. 'But what can we do with it?'

'You can find the pygmy puff,' said Hermione.

'Oh, top notch,' Ron declared as he threw his hands in the air. 'We're not zookeepers.'

'It could be a trail!' she replied. Her voice had a trace of anger and Ron sensed it.

'You can find out who bought a pygmy puff. Shops have to keep a list of the persons who've bought one.'

'One of your proposals?' said Ron.

'Yes,' beamed Hermione. 'It could be of use for you two. There's a list of it in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures.'

'Oh, and the shape, Hermione,' said Ginny as she touched Hermione's arm.

'How could I forget!'

Hermione turned around and levitated a book from her shelf and opened it. The page showed a diamond shape in different time periods. Ancient, medieval and contemporary, with the title in the bold script above it: "Lozenge shape over the years".

'The man had a lozenge shape carved into his skin.'

'Skin?' said Ron, making an overly aghast face. 'Nasty.'

'Yes. It might be of interest to you.'

Harry glanced at Ron, who smiled.

'We'll look into that,' Harry said. They drank their drinks and made themselves ready to leave. They stood up and walked to the hallway to get their jackets. Just when Harry took his from the coathanger, Ron pat him on the shoulder.

'Mate, before we leave I just want to make sure Hermione's okay. I'll be right back,' he said as he strolled of to Hermione. She was putting the plates in the cupboard using her wand. Harry was alone in the hallway and turned his head around the doorpost. Ginny was still sitting at the table, reading the book Hermione had just taken out. He decided to walk up to her.

'Are you alright, Ginny?' he said as he walked up to her. She glanced at him.

'Sure I'm alright, Harry.'

'I was just wondering why I didn't know you got into this adventure with Hermione.'

'Oh,' she smiled, 'it was just minor, wasn't it? Nobody got hurt.'

'True,' Harry admitted. 'But someone ended up in Saint Mungo's.'

Ginny's face turned somber. 'I just.. it just felt odd. Hermione told the Ministry about it straight away. I wanted to tell you right after, but I left my Mirrorphone in Wales. So I couldn't.'

Harry recognised her expression as genuine.

'I get it. I just thought you acted a bit weird.'

'It wasn't intentional,' countered Ginny.

Harry smiled and nodded. 'I understand.' He bent and gave Ginny a kiss on her forehead.

'I'm afraid this work's gonna take a little more than two days or so,' he continued as he walked around the table to face her, 'and I don't want to make promises I can't keep. I don't think I can attend the game against the Zürich Zappers – but I'll make sure when you play domestic a few days after.'

Ginny put on a smirk. 'It's alright, I get it – I'll make a few points just for you.'

'A few?' countered Harry teasingly. 'You better score a lot of p-'

'Done, you two?' interrupted Ron as he left the kitchen and entered Hermione's living room. His face was orange, or as orange as Ron already was. His left cheek was redder than his other one. Upon closer inspection, Harry recognised the remnants of lipstick. Ron was unaware of it. Harry and Ginny glanced at each other, confirming their suspicions as they affirmed Ron's question.

'Good.'

'Alright. Nothing else?' replied Harry, staring at his cheek. Ron looked at Ginny, who was chuckling. It took him a few moments to realize that the lipstick was still there.

'Funny,' he said as he used his arm to rub it off.

'You were saying?'

'Ehm,' said Ron. 'We're going to check for pygmy puffs then?'

'Yes,' said Harry. 'Someone in the Ministry must've got a list.'

* * *

The day went on swiftly and steadily. That couldn't be said of the Ministry. It always reminded Harry of an organised chaos. Even though a person like Hermione Granger was in charge of a lot of things, it still remained at least a bit messy at times. He couldn't imagine what it was before her appointment. Poor Mister Weasley.

The document was easily obtained to the surprise of both Aurors. However, the list was incomplete. The records of two months were missing. It was only received after Harry used himself – being Harry Potter – to insist that the remaining pages of the document came in straightaway. He despised operating like this, but it was just the only way to get them before the end of the day. It worked.

Ron was staring intensely at the pages.

'We have no idea what we're looking for.'

Harry's voiced must've echoed in Ron's head since he only looked up after a few seconds.

'Right ...' he said, concentrated. His index finger slid beside the words.

'I can't see any connection either.'

Harry loosened the tie of his work attire and leaned against Ron's cupboard.

'Let's see. The lifespan of a pygmy puff is – what? Two years?'

'Around that, yeah,' replied Ron. He scruffled the pages of the document with his wand and shot a look at the last page.

'This document goes back three years.'

'So we're good,' answered Harry. 'Or,' he waved with his hand, 'we've at least got some margin. Now, if you were to buy a pygmy puff, Ron, where would you go?'

'Where Hermione bought Crookshanks. The Magical Menagerie.'

Harry rubbed his head. 'Merlin. That place was a mess. I wonder if the lady from the Menagerie remembers her customers.'

'Can't be that bad,' said Ron as he stood up and took his coat. He folded the documents and put it in his inner pocket. 'Bill was there a few months back, he says the place is tidier now.'

Harry smiled.

'Let's hope.'

* * *

The north side of Diagon Alley was as busy as any shopping street in Britain. The Magical Menagerie was across the street from where once Fortescue's ice cream shop was. The building was renovated magnificently, Harry noted as he glanced at it, and housed a cosy pub by the name of the "Three Sisters".

Ron and Harry entered the Magical Menagerie. Ron was right. The place was a lot tidier, in a sense that cages with animals weren't cramped up upon each other near the walls, but were now sparsely scattered across the room. The counter was less messy as well. The witch Ron and he had met before their third year of Hogwarts was there, too, albeit older, and her hair began to show some grey strings.

'Hello, can I ...' said the witch as she looked up because of the ringing visitor's bell. She stopped talking when she saw the visitors. Two Aurors, dressed in uniform in an otherwise empty shop. But which Aurors!

'Harry Potter.. hello.'

The witch awkwardly tried to retain her normal composure. Harry brushed it off. People often reacted to him this way. Nonetheless, he couldn't resist feeling a little bit uncomfortable.

'Hello, miss …'

'Cotterill. Winifred Cotterill.'

'.. Cotterill. We have some questions for you regarding an ongoing research.'

Cotterill's eyes became wide.

'Nobody's dead,' assured Ron, gesturing her to calm down with an easy smile.

'We were wondering; our documents state you've sold four pygmy puffs in the last two years.'

'That might be right.'

'Might?' Harry said, examining Cotterill's expression. He hoped she wasn't too old to correctly remember important details.

'Ah, yes, you see, sometimes a pygmy puff escapes. Or gets stolen.'

'Has that been the case in the last two years?'

'No, oh, no,' replied Cotterill bewildered. 'I don't have many things to steal. Magical creatures are a pain to manage without the proper knowledge and equipment. Besides, this place is very secure.'

'Ah.' Harry's tone was neutral. He glanced at Ron, who was eyeing the shop carefully, looking for things which could suggest some infringement of some sorts. He his eyes quickly met Harry's, signing that everything looked normal.

'Has there been anyone suspicious in your shop who was interested in a pygmy puff? Bought a pygmy puff?'

Cotterill needed to think for a second. '.. No. There was a man who bought a pygmy puff for his niece, then there was another eight-year-old who chose it as her birthday gift..'

'Someone older?'

'Well,' she said as she rubbed her temple, 'not really. A woman was interested in a pygmy puff and was here for twenty minutes. The other day a man came in and started to talk about how pygmy puffs were amusing.. none of them bought anything.'

'The woman. Why didn't she buy anything?'

'I don't know, Mr. Potter. Many visitors come here. To take a look at the animals. Sometimes they buy them, sometimes they don't. You don't buy a magical creature as a commodity. It ought to be a well-thought choice.'

'Even though the woman was here for over twenty minutes. If I was in a shop for twenty minutes, I'm pretty sure I'd bought something,' spoke Harry.

'You can't speak for everyone,' said Cotterill. Her tone was all of a sudden firm. Harry and Ron glanced at each other, both taken aback. 'Again, she did do nothing wrong.'

'What did she look like?' said Ron.

'I don't know. She was wearing a hooded jacket-'

'A bit suspicious, innit?' interrupted Ron firmly. 'What else, was she not making eye contact? You surely never saw her face?'

Harry gestured Ron to calm down. He didn't understand why Ron was making such a fuss of Cotterill's statement since she looked genuine and tried to help them – Ron's attitude was worsening their situation.

'Well, excuse me, sir,' replied Cotterill, offended by Ron's outburst. 'But I saw her face. Her skin tone was dark but fair. She had black hair and brown eyes.'

'She took the hoodie off?' Harry was surprised.

'Yes, to ask something.'

'A hooded figure with manners,' muttered Ron. Again, Harry had to silence him with a gesture. Ron was hard to work with when he was irritated.

'What did she ask?'

Cotterill glanced through her shop very quickly. Harry thought that she was staring through them for a brief moment and then returned to her senses.

'I don't know.'

Ron was looking intensely at Harry, urging him silently to press on for answers. Harry, however, decided that he needed none of that.

'That's alright, Ms Cotterill. Thank you for your time.' He smiled, nodded, and left the shop.

Ron paced behind him as they conjoined themselves with the crowd at Diagon Alley. It was just before sunset and most wizards and witches already had made their way home.

'Don't you see it?'

'See what?' replied Ron, bewildered by the situation.

'Her eyes. Staring. Her suddenly answering questions very promptly, as if she rehearsed. But she doesn't know what the woman asked her.'

'Do you think that …?'

'Her memory has been tampered with? Certainly. But how and why, I'm not sure.'

Ron nodded. Harry felt little fury in his stomach.

'But what was with you in there? Don't act like that, Ron. She was trying to help us.'

'Sorry,' said Ron with a low voice, his tone full of regret. 'But why did you not press on for answers?'

'I just explained you..' mumbled Harry.

'Right,' replied Ron, staring at the pavement.

They started walking back, alongside the more busy and well-known shops in the direction of the Gringotts.

'It's just stuff with Hermione. We have disagreements every once in a while,' Ron began.

'That happens,' Harry replied coldly.

'Yeah,' said Ron.

'That's alright. Me and Ginny've got that too.'

'Did you clear things up with her?'

'If there was something to clear up,' Harry snorted. 'She's alright. I was just being .. naïve, I guess?'

Harry's self-reflection was interrupted by the Whedella Fray's voice coming out of his inner pocket. Her voice became louder, a sign that it was urgent. Harry reached into his jacket and took the Mirrorphone out.

'Whedella,' he said as her face appeared on the screen.

'Harry,' she spoke. 'We're having a situation. You two need to come visit me right now. Meanwhile, Aurors Huxley and Carlton are on their way to St. Mungo's, checking up upon Dan Brookes, the man Hermione took there.'

'The man of the gemstone?'

'Yes. We know its purpose.'

'We'll be right there.'

Fray ended the call. Harry put the Mirrorphone back in his pocket. He sighed.

'Looks like we're going to make some progress in this case.'

'Hope it's good progress,' said Ron.

'Her voice didn't sound to positive, did it?'

Ron nodded gravely and they Disapparated to the Ministry.

* * *

Fray's face spoke enough to make Harry and Ron silent upon entering her office. She was looking at papers on her desk with the utmost interest and only waved her wand to close the door behind the two Aurors.

Finally, she looked up.

'Sit, please.'

Harry and Ron took place in the stiff seats, facing Fray and her desk. She folded her arms and glanced at the paper.

'We've done tests routinely on the gemstone, but that didn't work out. Diagnostic spells are very ineffective. However, we're quite sure what the stone does. There's a connection between the stone and guy that Ms Granger and Ms Weasley sent to us. Dan Brookes.'

Fray took out her Mirrorphone and shove a paper with a graph into Ron and Harry's direction. The y-axis of the graph showed the intensity of the glow; the x-axis represented the time. She placed the Mirrorphone besides it, showing her conversations today. She had had several calls from Dr. Pranaj, the medic from Saint Mungo's who was head of the department on which Brookes lay.

'Wait a minute …' said Ron as he examined the Mirrorphone and the graph closer. 'There's a connection here. Every time the glow intensity is at a low point you get a call from Doctor Pranaj.'

Fray nodded. 'Sadly.'

'Why?'

'Because then he updates me whenever Brookes' condition is critical. I told him, too. I saw the correlation after the first time by coincidence; the glow's intensity was low when I spoke to him, lightened up after and Brookes' condition became more stable.'

'Merlin's beard..' said Harry, still switching between her Mirrorphone and graph. 'This gemstone controls him, Whedella.'

'Worse,' said Fray. 'I believe it keeps him alive.'

'Is he stable now?' asked Ron. He glanced at the graph, but it was from several hours ago.

'Yes, he is. The stone appears to strengthen him when it's close. Hence why Carlton and Huxley are at Saint Mungo's with the stone. Aurors will take shifts protecting it, ensuring it is in his proximity. In the meanwhile,' she continued, taking the paper and her Mirrorphone back, 'you ought to speed up your research. Gailbard agrees. Any theories what could bring you closer?'

'Yes, so many.' Ron's answer was intended to be sarcastic but was not treated as such by Fray.

'Like?'

'Eh … the shape he has on his arm,' answered Ron hesitatingly. 'A lozenge.'

'A lozenge. Quite a common one. Anything else?'

'No,' said Harry, taking the word from Ron. 'It's what Miss Granger stressed in our conversation.'

'If that's so, you better head to Freya Lawson. She's head of the Magical Library Archive and can help you further on that symbol.'

'The Magical Library Archive? I've never heard of that,' said Ron surprised.

'Its existence is a public secret – but it's in York. I'll let Lawson know you're coming.'

Harry and Ron agreed and set off to York with urgency. As they understood, Brookes was in a stable albeit critical state. The fact that they weren't sure about that either was utterly worrisome in itself. They had all the reason to find out as much as they could about the lozenge – and fast.

Lawson was waiting for them at the entrance of the Magical Library Archive. The building was old, but not ancient. High pillars stood tall as pedestrians without a destination. The air within the library was one of old, forgotten knowledge about a past hidden for Muggles. The magical community had written a lot about certain subjects; magical knowledge was transferred by scripture earlier than their Muggle counterparts did for Muggle knowledge. This meant that there was cohesive and reliable information about as early as Medieval practices and happenings. The legends had it, so Lawson explained, that scriptures of Merlin were also hidden in the Magical Library Archive itself.

Whether that was the truth was unknown to Harry. He couldn't imagine that they had it all figured out, because the shelves were filled with endless rows of books, some twenty shelves high. They were magically enchanted to go on infinitely and were all fully stocked with books.

But Lawson knew where to look. She had received Fray's message that the two Aurors needed information about lozenges and, so she figured, possible connections with ancient rituals and magic.

'I've taken the courtesy of gathering information about the lozenge,' Lawson said as she gestured towards a table filled with volumes. Many looked ancient, with book covers as old and thick as the Muggle bible. Ron sighed upon approaching them.

'We won't go through them page by page,' Lawson assured him, inspecting his expression. 'We're essentially looking through scriptures, which are just a few pages bound together.'

They took a seat in leather armchairs and started going through the works. Their goal was clear: find a mention of the shape lozenge in relation to either magical artifacts or magical events. The books were large and thick and many in number. Harry and Ron were going through them page by page. Lawson, on the other hand, used her wand and was swiftly going through the books. They stared at her for a brief moment. Lawson noticed that she was being watched.

'You'd think that they learn Aurors important spells nowadays,' she sighed while her forehead was covered in wrinkles. 'To search for words in a book, you simply say "Verbo Reperio" and then the word. In this case lozenge.' She waved her wand in the shape of a looking glass.

Ron chuckled when seeing Lawson's wand movement. She raised an eyebrow.

'Try it for yourself, then.'

She pushed a book at Ron. He hesitated, but took his wand out of his pocket, wove it accordingly, and mumbled "Verbo Reperio Lozenge". The book instantly opened and with each page was opened with lightning speed. After a second the book fell on its other side, magically turned around and presented itself to Ron just as it was before he spoke out the spell.

'Are these .. bookmarkers?' Ron said as he fumbled with the small coloured papers sticking out from the side.

Lawson smiled. 'Yes. Open one of them.'

Ron did and the bookmark directed him to the word lozenge.

'Blimey,' he said. He turned to Harry. 'Hermione'll be happy with this.'

Harry smiled. 'Let's try it then and sort this out.'

An hour went by before they went through all the books Lawson had selected for them to read through. They had perfected the spell in that hour, but it didn't provide to be successful. Mentions had been there, of course, but either it was disapproving or proving the non-existent powers of the lozenge. Or, all in all, just assuring its little significance to the reader.

Harry was sighing when he closed the last book.

'No worthy mentions of the lozenge,' he said, stretching and falling back into the comfy chair.

Lawson was still sitting upright. 'Seems that we're not lucky today.'

'Isn't there anything ...' mumbled Ron. He had had his face resting in his hand. His right cheek was now red, in contrast to the left one, which looked funny. He obviously was bored by the literary research, as was Ron through and through, but had a sparkle in his eyes which signified some hope.

'Isn't there any legend of some sort?' he prompted.

'Legends?' Lawson sounded scarily curious. 'We don't trust legend. Books are reliable. Written records.'

Harry shot a look at Ron, who began to smile.

'But you know that there a lot of things that are stories that turn out to be true,' he said. 'The Deathly Hallows is an example, isn't it, Harry?'

Ron glanced at his best friend, who tried to suppress a smile.

'That's an exception, Ron.'

Lawson shuffled through some books while Harry tried to figure out whether Ron was serious or not. True, the Deathly Hallows were always thought to be a myth, children's stories. However, as the world wizarding world knew, it turned out to be true.

Harry found it scary, nonetheless, to rely on undocumented stuff like this. Not only could he vividly portray an image of Hermione eye-rolling when she heard that he and Ron were investigating on the basis of only rumours and legends, but Ginny would be mad too. Harry doubted that that was something he wanted. They needed a written record of... well, something.

'We need a legend that's written down,' Harry said. 'Miss Lawson, do you perhaps have a book that has something about the mythology of symbols?'

Lawson stopped drifting past the pages of the book in her hands and eyed the shelves. 'There's a book by Lugh Bullard, "Mythologies and Symbols of the Past and Present", which might be interesting.' She waved her wand and Ron and Harry saw a book levitating from a shelf and calmly floating towards them. It landed swiftly on her desk.

'Verbo Reperio Lozenge,' spoke Lawson carefully whilst she wove her wand accordingly. The book opened itself with rapid speed, from one side to another, and put itself back in the same position. Ron and Harry saw that there was only one bookmark applied in the book. Lawson opened it and began to read. The page was filled with text for the most part, but at the end of the page a lozenge was drawn, albeit a bit more curvy than what they had been told Hermione saw on Brookes' arm.

'What does it say?' asked Ron nervously. He examined Lawson's face, hoping to receive a sign whether the page contained useful information.

'It is certainly interesting..' Lawson remarked after a few seconds of silence.

Ron wanted to repeat the question but was unable to, since she gestured him to be quiet.

'It says here that in the Netherlands certain "wise women", spirits of ancient herbalists who tend to revolve around gravesites and other sacred places. Muggles also knew of these legends and thought mist was associated with these beings.'

'So they do exist?' Harry asked.

'Yes, they do, but apparently they're just spirits. They do have a certain temper, though. Bullard notes that these "wise women" can either be kind or foul-hearted. Present witches and wizards usually don't interact with them, since they have a tendency to foresee the future.'

'Charming,' said Ron. 'But what does the shape of the lozenge have to do with them?'

'It is their symbol,' Lawson said. 'Of their fertility. They use it for …' she narrowed her eyes. 'Safekeeping.'

'Of what?' Harry eyed the page with interest. 'Brookes is being safeguarded by a stone? This doesn't make any sense.'

'It got to make sense,' Ron said. 'The stone … is keeping him hostage, right? He's sort of assigned to that stone, connected, through that symbol.'

Lawson nodded. 'It sounds logical.'

Harry folded his arms. 'So what's next? A trip?'

'You need some help approaching these spirits,' replied Lawson. 'You don't want them against, you apparently.'

Harry glanced at Ron. 'I'll call Gailbard. Seems we have to make our way to Amsterdam.'

They thanked Lawson, levitated the books into their rightful place and walked out of the Library. The air was chilly in York. Darkness surrounded them, only blinded by the lights of lantern poles. Harry took out his Mirrorphone and contacted Gailbard.

'We have a lead that takes us to the Netherlands.'

'The Netherlands?' Gailbard's voice was one of disbelief.

'Yes. Their Ministry of Magic is in Amsterdam, right?'

'I … believe so. What do you need to do?'

'Talk to some spirits.'

'How certain are you about this?' asked Gailbard. Staring intently at Harry.

The latter eyed Ron, who nodded carefully.

'Certain.'

'I trust your decision making, Harry. But I don't want you to wander around.''

'Yes, sir.'

'Then I'll notify the Dutch. I want you both in the Portkey Office at 8 am for departure.'

Harry thanked Gailbard and broke the connection. Together with Ron he Disapparated, leaving York darker in the night.


	4. A Fire Needs Fuel

_A Fire Needs Fuel_

'Please stand back.'

As the woman's voice in the dark room dies out, Harry and Ron feel themselves swirl as they touch the big copper ring that evaporates them. Travelling by Portkey is not Harry's favourite way of travelling, but it's quick – and costs no considerable time and effort.

Light met darkness and within a few seconds Ron and Harry felt themselves in a solid form again.

'Still very unpleasant sometimes, mate,' Ron said.

Harry nodded. 'I know.'

A door in the room appeared and swung open. A man entered, open his arm very wide and smiled.

'Harry Potter and Ron Weasley. Welcome!'

'Minister?' said Harry.

'That's correct,' the Minister for Magic replied. 'Minister Treefman.' Ron raised an eyebrow while looking at him. The Minister maintained a bright smile.

'Is there anything, Mr Weasley?' he said suddenly. Ron's face fell.

'No, nothing.'

'Ah, perfect,' Treefman added coolly. 'Now, follow me.' He gestured to walk behind him. Harry and Ron followed him suit and whilst walking the Minister slowed his pace to talk to his guests.

'I didn't expect such a high guest to ever visit us,' Treefman said as they came at the end of a corridor. Its only purpose seemed to be to accommodate other exits from Portkey rooms, but it turned out to be false. At the end of the corridor was a small, but colourful oak wooden door.

'Come in,' he added to Harry and Ron. As they entered, the vast room became apparent to them. It was a beautiful old hall. The arch-shaped roof was made from material that countered the sunlight coming in from the big windows in the walls. As they walked in, numerous portraits welcomed them. Sometimes in Dutch, but mostly in English.

'Nice.' Ron's reaction to the breeze was as dry as the tuna on his sandwiches.

The Minister smiled. 'You're famous. Very famous.' He walked to one side of the giant room, where a desk and two guest chairs stood. As the trio sat down, a ghost entered through the wall and took the courtesy of requesting whether Ron and Harry would like to have any drinks. As they were accommodated and had exchanged the usual generalities, Harry cut to the chase.

'My colleague and I are here with a request, Mr Treefman. Strange occurrences have been happening in the past days which have left us with questions. We were told that your Ministry might possess some answers.'

'Yes, yes, odd things, I was notified of it,' the Minister replied, sipping his morning tea. 'We have someone who knows a lot about _white women_. There's a problem, however.'

A silence followed.

Ron cleared his throat. 'Which is?'

The Minister stared intently at Ron.

'The _white women_ have not been seen for 150 years.'

Ron shot a look at Harry. 'Pity.'

Harry didn't smile back. Instead, he focused his attention back on Treefman.

'What can we do about this?'

The Minister put down his tea and raised his hands in the air. 'I … don't know really. Of course, there some people who've seen them, but they're old, almost ancient.'

'This 'someone' you have. Is he or she ancient, too?'

Treefman chuckled. 'No, it's a he, and he is not ancient, nor very young.'

'Interesting, though, that he's so interested in this,' Ron noted.

The Minister glanced at Ron. 'Indeed. Some persons are just interested in these matters. Just like we have enough young witches and wizards who're obsessed with England in general.' He winked.

'What?' said Ron, but Treefman stood up and snapped his fingers. A map appeared in the air, outlining the country of the Netherlands. As he tapped his wand twice to make it a pointing stick, The Minister began explaining the country, a little bit of its Muggle history and made a shortcut to the _white women_.

'White women are special beings. They're said to appear from the mist. We think they're guarding old spots of ancient magical power.' He pointed at the eastern border of the country with Germany. 'They're mainly located here. We don't know what these spots are nor what they possess – the knowledge has been lost over the years, our archive got burned down by Fiendfyre not twice but thrice. The damage to many of our books was irreversible.'

'So, we rely on hearsay.' Harry's word echoed through the hall. Treefman was silently staring at the map, eventually turned his head and nodded.

'For now,' he added. He levitated his teacup in his hands and drank from it. 'You know, in time, when you're able to contact them, you have a primary source.' He smiled.

'Right,' said Harry. 'Can we meet our contact?'

'Of course, of course,' The Minister answered. He stood up and stepped through the wall, leaving Harry and Ron confused.

* * *

'I didn't really expect it, to be honest,' Ron shrugged as they walked past pine and oak trees. They were in near the border with Germany, where Treefman had suggested they had to go to find white women. The area was peaceful and reminded Harry of little towns near the coast, south of 'his' Surrey. He wasn't sure what Ronald was thinking of this – all he could talk about for now was the magic trick the Minister of Magic had performed in front of their eyes. Rudolph Antich, their contact, had joined them in their search, and listened quietly to Ron's observations.

'Crazy,' Ron eventually concluded, 'I just didn't know ghost looked so real.'

Antich smiled and glanced to his side, where Harry was walking.

'I don't know, Ron,' he said, 'but they surely got an appointment for a lifetime there.'

Antich chuckled. 'Maybe.' He coughed and stopped. As he pointed to the right, he said, 'this is a very old place. That barn is centuries old. Many Muggles report strange feelings there.' He walked on.

'Is it a place where white women often come?' Ron said.

'No,' said Antich sharply, 'it's a Portkey spot for Dutch wizards and witches who want to enjoy the countryside. The strange feelings Muggles report is because Portkeys inherently have a safety mechanism against their discovery, making Muggles confused and dull.

'I've never noticed,' Ron spoke.

'That's because you're a wizard,' countered Antich. 'We're nearly there,' he added, gesturing at the forest ahead of him. Between the pine trees there appeared to be an open space.

'What is that?' Harry said.

'I believe you English call it "heath",' said Antich, 'and coincidentally, it's the primary spot to look for white women.'

'How do you know?' said Ron. 'I thought they weren't seen for over a hundred years of so.'

Antich snorted. 'The oddity is that I can neither confirm nor deny. All the reports about white women we get… are sent to us by the Dutch Muggle Ministry.'

Harry looked at Antich in disbelief.

'They're reported by Muggles,' Antich added.

As the clouds were slowly drifting into the sunset, the setting sun erased all the warmth Harry and Ron felt shining on their face. As they conjured a warm coat on themselves which they had packed for their trip, Antich remained focussing on a spot in the distance. When Harry mimicked his view and directed his eyes in the same angle, he saw a lonely tree in the heath itself.

Antich stopped. He pointed at the tree.

'That's our focus for tonight,' he said, buttoning up as they approached a bush. Antich kneeled behind it, conjured a blanket and took off his backpack. As Harry and Ron sat down on the comfortable, wool-woven cover, they shared in the food Antich had brought, enjoying Dutch sandwiches. Meanwhile, the night fell, and the heath became silent. Harry, Ron and Antich didn't share much words.

'Have you casted a Silence and Invisible Spell upon us?' Ron asked suddenly. He became visibly irritated by having to sit still in silence for a long period of time.

Antich turned his head to Ron. 'I have,' he said. 'It's needed. We're waiting.'

Ron shrugged his shoulders. 'For what, actually?' whispered.

Antich had focused his attention back to the tree. He shortly glanced to Ron before answering his question.

'Muggles.'

' _Muggles_?'

Ron's repetition evoked no response of Antich, who, Harry figured, most probably knew that it was best to not clarify anything further. The absence of sound remained for a short time before Harry, who had gone off daydreaming about Ginny, was touched on the arm by Antich.

'Look!' he said. Ron, who had also dozed off, came closer to the two. Together, they watched the tree.

From the darkness, a light appeared to come closer. It moved elegantly, as if it was delightfully enjoying a night stroll. As their surroundings were black, only the moonshine gave them light. The trio didn't dare to cast _Lumos_ as it would give away their position. What the light luminous dot in front of them was remained unclear.

Suddenly, there was sound.

A hiss. A low, unnerving hiss could be distinguished from the sound of the wind, the whistling of the leaves and occasional deer passer-by's. Harry glanced at Antich. His face was tense and as his eyes remained fixated on the tree, Harry felt a feeling of anguish. Not fear but upset. Something was off.

The light moved closer to the tree and extinguished. The hiss became softer and softer, and abruptly two girls were walking towards the tree. Chattering and clamouring, they approached the chunk of wood in the illusion that they'd be alone. They stopped, looked at each other and dozed off.

Rapidly, the two girls levitated towards Antich, Ron and Harry, again, screaming, their faces bright white, their eyes red. With their hands forward they seemed to leap towards the trio.

'Get out!' Ron shouted. Harry obliged, took out his wand and shot a spell at the oncoming entities.

A cry followed, the darkness swiftly ensued and the clamouring and chatting disappeared. Harry, who had fallen on the sand, adjusted his glasses but did not twitch a single nerve. He had no idea where Ron was. He had no idea where Antich was. For all he knew, these, well … ghosts, they could be behind him. As he tried to concentrate to see in the dark, he heard Antich moaning.

Harry made a split-decision and got up. He limped towards the source of the sound, trying to get what was going on, maybe catch up with Ron or Antich, who had run away – only to be knocked on his back by a big swoosh. Calmness and dizziness at the same time engulfed him, his vision became blurry, the darkness became thicker and blacker, and swiftly he entered the realm of the deep. The last thing to enter his consciousness was a long, soft girl's laugh, only for Harry to drift away.


End file.
